Senator Baldwin Slams Trump Administration’s Efforts to Dismantle Education Department & Shortchange American Families

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, Senator Tammy Baldwin (D-WI), Ranking Member on the Senate Appropriations Subcommittee that oversees the Department of Education, condemned the Trump Administration’s misguided actions to illegally dismantle the Department, threatening to cut off or disrupt vital support for students, teachers, and families.

“Every American child – no matter who they are or where they live – deserves access to a high-quality education. That’s the promise and opportunity we give to all Americans. Today’s announcement takes us a step further away from achieving that. After cutting funding for Wisconsin schools and trying to cut significantly more, Donald Trump is now trying to illegally eliminate the Department of Education in order to score a political point and it is students and families that will pay the price,” said Senator Baldwin. “This isn’t complicated: local communities and parents just want their schools to be funded well and children safe in the classroom. Illegally moving programs to other federal agencies does nothing to help students – it just creates confusion and will lead to more bureaucracy, not less. I’ll do everything I can to stop President Trump and Education Secretary McMahon in their crusade to shortchange Wisconsin children.”

Today, President Donald Trump and Department of Education Secretary Linda McMahon announced that the Trump Administration will move programs from the Department of Education into agencies without the proper expertise to administer them. This includes moving the Office of Elementary and Secondary Education, which oversees critical K-12 formula and competitive grant programs, and the Office of Postsecondary Education, which oversees programs to help students access and complete college, to the Labor Department. The Indian Education program will be moved to the Department of Interior, a childcare access program will be moved to the Department of Health and Human Services, and foreign language education programs to the State Department. In a similar effort to skirt the law earlier this year, the Trump Administration moved career, technical, and adult education grant programs out of the Education Department and into the Department of Labor.

Senator Baldwin has been an outspoken critic of President Trump’s stated goal of dismantling the Department of Education and continued efforts to withhold funding from American students and schools, including blocking $7 billion in Congressionally approved funding ahead of the 2025-2026 school year. In June, Senator Baldwin pressed Department of Education Secretary Linda McMahon on the Trump administration’s decision to cut off funding for grants for school based mental health, including a Wisconsin Department of Public Instruction program that provides mental healthcare for students.

###